Feb. 28, 2012
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State men's soccer head coach Bob Warming has announced the signing of four student-athletes to National Letters of Intent. Joining the Nittany Lions in the fall will be defenders Shane Campbell (York, Pa.) and Matt Mayewski (Belle Mead, N.J.), forward Kelton Cheney (State College, Pa.), and midfielder Drew Klingenberg (Gibsonia, Pa.).
Warming, who is in his 20th month at the helm of the Penn State program, previously added Christian Kaschak (York, Pa.), a freshman early enrollee, and transfers Eli Dennis (Easton, Md.), Akil Howard (Queens, N.Y.), and Emmanuel Martin (Cormontreuil, France) to the roster. All four are currently training with the squad for the spring season in preparation for the 2012 campaign.
A high school teammate of fellow recruit Christian Kaschak, Shane Campbell was a three-year varsity starter for Dallastown Area, helping the Wildcats win three York-Adams Interscholastic Athletic Association (YAIAA) Division I championships, two YAIAA county championships (2010-11), and a 2010 District 3 title. A team co-captain as a junior and senior, Campbell was a three-time YAIAA all-county selection (2009-11) and earned all-state honors in 2011.
Campbell played club soccer with the FC Delco Academy team from 2009-12, reaching the USST U-16 Academy playoffs in 2011. He has also been a member of the Philadelphia Union U-17/U-18 Academy team for two seasons. In 2011, Campbell was selected to play in two MLS Reserve games with the Union, starting at left back versus the Columbus Crew and Toronto FC.
Coach Warming on Shane Campbell
"Shane is a great athlete that just keeps getting better in his soccer abilities. His speed and athleticism make him a very difficult guy to get behind for opposing attackers. In addition to the academy preparation he is getting with FC Delco, he is receiving some outstanding additional training from Brendan Burke and the staff with the Philadelphia Union. I'm excited to see where he can be with his game. I am looking forward to helping him continue to get better and develop into the best player he can be. Great attitude and great work ethic are a really good start toward getting there and Shane has both those qualities."
A local product who attended State College Area High School and played for former Nittany Lion John Marsden (1972-75), Kelton Cheney topped the Little Lions in goals scored all three years as a varsity starter. As a senior, he registered 25 goals and four assists, leading SCAHS to a 17-2-1 record and the PIAA semifinals. Cheney was ranked by both ESPN and TopDrawerSoccer.com as a top player in Pennsylvania and was named to the All-State Starting 11 by ESPN the Magazine.
At the club level, Cheney played with PA Classics for four years. In 2011, he scored a team-high 12 goals, helping the squad place second in the Mid-Atlantic Division of the East Conference and clinch a spot in the academy playoffs. Cheney also participated in the Philadelphia Union first ever fall program, earning a call-up to play in an MLS Reserve game versus the New York Red Bulls in August 2011.
Coach Warming on Kelton Cheney
"Kelton is a big, slashing forward with real composure around the goal. He loves scoring and is good at it. It is terrific to have a local player from our small town make it onto the team at Penn State. Kelton is super dedicated to getting better and makes the five hour round trip journey to every practice session with US Soccer Development Academy coach of the year Steve Klein of the PA Classics. Additionally, last fall, Kelton made the regular seven hour round trip journey to train with the Union while his high school season was also going on. Kelton and his parents have demonstrated a remarkable dedication to help him become his best as a player. I am sure he is looking forward to walking to training every day instead of driving 20 hours a week!"
Drew Klingenberg hails from the Pittsburgh area where he starred at Pine-Richland High School in Gibsonia, Pa. A four-year starter in the midfield, he finished his career with 24 goals and 31 assists. Ranked as the No. 1 recruit in Pennsylvania by TopDrawerSoccer.com (August 2011), Klingenberg earned First Team All-WPIAL and all-state honors following his junior and senior years. A two-time Gatorade Player of the Year nominee, he was named an NSCAA Regional All-American in 2011.
As a member of the Pittsburgh Strikers club team, Klingenberg won a State Cup championship in 2011 after the squad finished as runners-up in 2009 and 2010. At the ODP level, he was selected to the Region I Team Final Player Pool from 2006-10. Klingenberg compiled an impressive international resume with the ODP team, playing games in Italy, Argentina, Croatia, and Slovenia, in addition to competing in numerous interregional events in the U.S. With the Pennsylvania ODP team, he won Ryder Cup Tournament championships in 2009 and 2010 and placed third in the 2010 US Youth National ODP championship.
Coach Warming on Drew Klingenberg
"Drew is one of those guys who is not fortunate enough to live in an area where there is an academy team. However, that has not stopped him from doing everything he can to develop himself as a player. Drew has traveled and played extensively with Coach Keith Tabatznik and the Region I ODP team to help him hone his game against the best U.S. players that are not in the academy and against international competition. He is an active, creative, and mobile wide midfield player who can come inside and play. He can beat people off the dribble but can also come inside and put others through to goal."
Matt Mayewski comes to Penn State after a standout career at Montgomery High School in Skillman, N.J., where the four-year starter was a three-time First Team All-Skyland Conference honoree. A captain in his senior season, he was named first team all-county and all-state and team MVP.
Mayewski also excelled as a member of the Players Development Academy, one of the nation's premier club programs. In 2010, the team was an East Conference semifinalist and, in 2011, it won the Liberty Division championship and was a U.S. Academy finalist.
Coach Warming on Matt Mayewski
"Matt is a player that we had in camp last summer. I really didn't know much about him prior to him coming to camp. I liked a lot of his attributes and asked him if he had ever played right back. He had not but within a couple of days of playing there, you could see how much Matt can add to the attack from that position. I offered him a spot on our team at the end of camp. Sam Nellins at PDA was nice enough to move him to right back with the club this spring to help Matt in his development. He and I laugh about it because I know he is not a big fan of Barca. However, we are having him watch Danny Alves. The good qualities that Alves has is the type of attacking right back role model I want him to emulate. He is willing to work at it and even willing to watch my favorite side of Barca to help him get a great image for what he can be in that position. He reminds me on the right side of another player that played for me, Seth Sinovic, an attacking player who we converted into a left back and now starts for Sporting Kansas City."
Warming, who attained his milestone 400th career win in 2011, returns 13 letterwinners and eight starters from last season's team that advanced to the Big Ten Tournament title game for the third consecutive year, broke the Penn State record for shutouts in a season, and led the conference in goals allowed and goals against average. Among the returnees are the team's top three scorers in Minh Vu (Tucson, Ariz.), Julian Cardona (Lincoln, Neb.), and Hasani Sinclair (Coral Gables, Fla.) and the anchor of the PSU defense, goalkeeper Andrew Wolverton (Snellville, Ga.).
Penn State begins its spring season on Sunday, March 18 when Saint Francis (Pa.) visits Holuba Hall for a 1:30 p.m. scrimmage.